The Hour Factor: A Financial Tip for Personal Growth and Development

One of my favorite parts of the 14-Day Credit Challenge is the “buried treasures” lesson because it gives students an opportunity to have massive personal growth and development.

You see, when I teach people how to find their buried treasures, I also give them a financial tip about changing their mindset. After all, finding money won’t change your life if you rush out and spend it frivolously.

Instead, I give them a financial tool for personal growth and development.

It’s called the “Hour Factor™ question.”

Let me explain …

Instead of considering price alone, always consider the “Hour Factor™” before making a purchase. The Hour Factor™ is the number of hours you will need to work to pay for something.

And this number is a better indicator than the price. From a personal growth and development perspective, the most valuable thing we have is viagra … time with our families, time pursuing our passions, time enjoying life. When you buy something, you are simultaneously making a commitment to spend time away from your family  (or away from your passions) so that you can work enough hours to pay for your purchase.

So before you purchase anything, always ask yourself the “Hour Factor question”: Is it worth it to work ____ hours to pay for this?

What do you think? Do you like this strategy? Leave a comment below and let me know …

And for those of you who want to use this strategy, here’s the process:

1.     Start by figuring out your hourly after-tax wage. If you are paid hourly, just look at your paystub and divide the take-home (after-tax) pay by the number of hours your worked. If you are paid a salary, divide your annual after-tax salary by 2,080 hours (this is based upon a 40-hour work week, 52 weeks per year).  This is your after-tax wage.

2.     Then, divide the price of something by your after-tax salary to computer the number of hours you must work to buy it. For instance, if your after-tax pay is $12.50, you will have to work ten hours to pay for something that costs $125.

3.     Once you have “done the math,” ask the Hour Factor question. For instance: Is it worth it to work 10 hours away to pay for this? You can always change the question to make it more powerful. For instance, I ask: Is it worth it to work ____hours away from my children and wife to pay for this?

Is it worth 30 minutes of your time to pay for a latté and muffin from the corner coffee shop each morning?

Is it worth even 15 minutes? Or would you rather spend that money (and your time) on your child’s college savings?

It’s up to you! But one way or another, the Hour Factor question will represent a giant shift in your mindset. And it’s a powerful vehicle for personal growth and development.

In just 30 days.

Let me repeat that—she earned $26,000 in just 30 days.

Here’s what happened …

Yvette is a grant-writer, and she made a great living. In fact, she had recently remodeled her house.

But then the recession hit. All the grant money dried up, and no one was hiring grant writers. So Yvette had to make a change—and fast.

So she bought a chocolate store and poured her heart and soul into learning all about retail. But then she unexpectedly lost her lease, which meant her storefront had to close.

She was struggling to pay her bills. Days turned to weeks, and before she knew it, she was months behind on the mortgage for her house—a house that she shared with her husband, her two sons, her 90-year-old dad, and her mom, who has Alzheimer’s.

You can imagine how panicked she was. What was going to happen to her family? Her mom? Her young boys? Her aging dad?

At 3:00 one morning, Yvette woke up with an idea: I can still make chocolate from home. If I can get 260 people to buy 200 dollars worth of chocolate from me, I can use half of the money for overhead and put the other half toward my loan. I can save my house!

So the next day, she went a bold email to 260 people. She explained her situation, and she asked them to each spend $200 on chocolates. She wrote something like this …

“It’s okay if you don’t do this … but if you can’t, please tell me so that I can find someone else to fill your slot.”

Then she told them something that might have been the tipping point. She wrote something to the tune of this: “I know you might not want $200 worth of chocolate today, so you can pre-order for Christmas, Valentine’s Day, and birthdays. Just let me know when you want the chocolate, and I’ll have it delivered to you.”

Exactly 30 days later, she walked into Bank of America and handed over a check for $26,000.

She wrote this on her Facebook wall: “House update: A MIRACLE. All $26,000 paid. I’m up to date and with lots of projects to maintain and get the business back on track. I sobbed like a baby in my car after I walked out of the bank. Wow, I have never worked so hard and with such focus …”

I’m telling this story because many of you wrote to me asking how to make instant income. Yvette’s is just one of the many strategies people use to make extra money …

…strategies I’ll be sharing in the days to come.

If you have an “instant income” success story, leave a comment below!

I’m gone for almost the entire month of August in Paris with my family, my wife, my three kids (3,2, and 1 years old) and it’s going to cost me less than other trips we have taken.

PLUS – we are going to create amazing memories that will last forever.  How is this possible?  Watch this:

Here what the house looks like:

Vacation on a Budget – The Luxurious Way

Personal Growth Blog for Credit Scoring Expert Philip Tirone

One of my favorite ideas suggested by Higgins is to use Twitter to “follow” the travel companies or travel experts that you like to use. Large Companies, like American Airlines, United Airlines, etc. etc, are beginning to tweet their best offers, deals and advice, and the first people that respond can take advantage of those rates!

Higgins also suggests websites ITASoftware.com and Kayak.com for finding the least expensive travel dates. She also reminds readers to check for nearby airports that might be less expensive than your first choice and to fly on off-peak days. And, try to use online travel sites like Yapta.com, Travelocity.com or Orbitz.com that automatically refund the difference if your fare or reservation falls in price after you buy it.

For these and other tips to learn Tips for Saving Money on Vacation, read Higgins’ article in the New York Times in full.

I had to post this because we are all big Disneyland fans in our family.  Here is how it works, people who spend one day volunteering at a qualifying organization will receive Disneyland Tickets, for free (one day/per person). Disney’s “Give a Day, Get a Disney Day” program runs through December 15 of this 2010, or until one million tickets are given away, whichever comes first.

Want to teach your kids a lesson in community spirit? This is the perfect opportunity. Kids six and up are allowed to volunteer in exchange for a free Disneyland ticket so long as they are registered by an adult 18 years or older. A list of participating organizations can be found at the Disney website. Search for an opportunity in your area. Then the whole family of volunteers can enjoy a Disneyland Ticket for free and spend the day together in the Magic Kingdom.

If you look at the small print, 529 Saving Plan Fees are not cheap, however, Fidelity just announced that they are cutting their 529 Saving Plan Fees by 50% in certain states.  Yes, 50%!

These state include, New Hampshire, California, Massachusetts, Delaware, and Arizona. Vanguard and Upromise, which manage plans in New York and Colorado, have also cut fees, as has TIAA-CREF, which manages Vermont plan.

Keep in mind, over the long term, it’s not about investing at the right time, it’s about “investing consistently.”

If you have children, talk to your financial advisor about Fidelity’s 529 Saving Plan Fees, and see if this, or another 529 Saving Plan could be the fit for you and your family.  Let’s make 2010, our best year ever!

In last week’s Wall Street Journal, there was an article called, “Star-Spangled Bargains:  Americans are natural shoppers and this holiday season they need to do their patriotic duty and rid the nation of recessions.”

You see the problem here?

There was a great article on creditcards.com this month: “Frugality: Just a fad? Or will consumers keep saving post-recession?”

If you saved that $4 that went into Starbucks’ pocket every day, you would have an extra $7,200 in five years, not to mention interest. Would you be sad about all those lost lattes? I doubt it, but I can say for sure that you would be thrilled to have a cushion during these hard times.

Here’s an idea:  Don’t think about saving a $1 here or there.  Think about the fact that every $1 you save today, will be worth $2 in five years.  Why?  Since you have already paid tax on this income, this goes right into savings – that gives you a 40% ROI on that money – right now!

How about your $50 gym membership? Would it hurt you to exercise outside during the summer months? That’s an extra $300 a year.

Rich people become rich by being frugal. If we want to protect ourselves from the next recession, let’s adopt frugality as a lifestyle change.

How about this as a New Year’s resolution? Cut one expense a month. Start by canceling that magazine that never gets read. Who knows? Maybe by year’s end, frugality will be running through your veins and you might not be thinking how to save money each month!

This article in the Wall Street Journal noted that about 29 percent of urgent care clinics are owned or co-owned by hospitals, which makes them a lot pricier than their independently-owned counterparts.

In fact, a visit to a hospital-owned urgent care clinic might cost you three times as much as a visit to a clinic owned by an independent doctor or group of doctors.

What should you do? Price it out, just like you would any other purchase.

Anytime you make a doctor’s appointment, ask whether the clinic is owned by or associated with a hospital. Then ask what you can expect to pay for a visit. Call a few clinics and ask the same question. You should also call your insurance company to find out how much of the bill will be covered by insurance.

Most of us don’t think about shopping around to find the best healthcare, but this we should, especially in today’s economy. Taking this tip, and all our saving money tips will get you closer to the life you want.